


Who We Are

by ResplendentRi



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, Trans Character, Trans Male Character, Trans Togami Byakuya, they/them pronouns for Impostor-chan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-18 17:00:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28995636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ResplendentRi/pseuds/ResplendentRi
Summary: [Non-Despair/Ultimate Talent Development Program AU] Inspired by that Christmas dialogue.After telling their classmates that they're not really Byakuya, the Ultimate Imposter still has some lingering doubts and insecurities as they face a daunting new future as themselves. Luckily (or unluckily), the real deal also happens to be staying at school just a little longer, over winter break.
Relationships: Togami Byakuya & Togami Byakuya (SDR2)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 15





	Who We Are

**Author's Note:**

> working title: "bitches be asking "is anyone gonna project onto Togamis" and then not wait for an answer (im bitches)"

_ Joyeux Noël, mon chou! _

_ Comment va l'école? Comment vont tes amis? Merci de partager ces bonbons avec tes camarades de classe, pour Noël! _

_ À Bientôt _ _! _

_ Je t'adore, _

_ Ta Maman _

Byakuya sat in the empty dining hall. His classmates had all gone home on the first day of break, while he had permission to stay an extra night out of convenience. He was scheduled to fly to Berlin on a business trip that evening; Aloysius would be picking him up in a matter of hours to make his flight (not that it mattered, private jets weren't bound by strict timeframes).

He indulged in one of the chocolates his mother had sent, choosing one at random from the box and biting it in half as he stared at her letter, instead of the tablet that  _ should _ be taking his attention. He hadn't seen her since taking up his title as the Togami heir, but he sent her flowers on Mother's Day, and she sent him letters and gifts for his birthday and Christmas. She also seemed to be under the impression that he was much friendlier with his classmates than he actually was.

She had... A different idea on what he needed to do to succeed. One that depended upon an inaccurate and outdated idea of who he was. He supposed that was part of the reason why even though his business frequently took him to Europe, he never made it to see her - the other part, of course, was that her schedule was quite often just as full and inflexible as his was. 

The closest he came was when he attended an opera that she was playing in, but he had been there on the invitation of a potential client, and hadn't been able to stay and meet her afterward. It was a shame; the client turned out to be a boor and a bigot, and as much as Byakuya had enjoyed utterly shredding the man's entire life and future political aspirations, he found himself wondering if it was worth the missed opportunity to see her.

"Are those chocolates from Debauve et Gallais?" asked a voice from the door. Byakuya looked up, folding the letter in half and setting it on the table, to see the imposter. His frown deepened when he saw that they were still dressed in the obnoxious white knockoff of his own suit.

"I thought you were going to stop this charade," he said. The imposter sat down across from him, despite not being invited.

"I did," they said. "I told my class that I wasn't Byakuya Togami."

"Then why in God's name are you still dressed like that?"

"Well... Even knowing that I have friends just because I'm me, I'm still... trying to figure out who that person is," they admitted shyly. "Truthfully, I thought that you would already be gone by now, and I would have a little more time before I saw you again. I know I promised the next time we met, I would apologize with my real face, but... that person isn't ready yet. It's hard to explain. But then, maybe I don't have to. You know a little of what that's like, don't you?" they asked. Byakuya froze, his heart immediately dropping into the pit of his stomach and leaving him cold.

"Of course not," he said sharply. "I've known that I was destined for greatness since the moment of my birth. I wouldn't expect a nothing like you to understand." The imposter didn't seem fazed, leaning back and crossing their arms in a caricatured manner.

"Of course not," they parroted back at him, their voice a flawless mockery of his own. "It would be impossible for an Ultimate imposter to understand the essence of a man they chose to mimic before even coming to Hope's Peak. That the Affluent Progeny changed his name when he was chosen as the Togami heir, or that his struggle against his siblings was just an extension of his lifelong fight to be understood for who he really was..." The imposter pushed up their (his) glasses. "What I'm trying to say is, we're polar opposites, aren't we? But in a way, we both chose the name Byakuya Togami."

Byakuya found himself without words. And then, suddenly, a flood of them.

"Is this blackmail?" he asked, angrily. "The Togami Conglomerate has the power to grind your pathetic body to dust under its heel, I won't bow to some desperate, flailing attempt for- for what, money? Power? You disgust me-"

" _ What? _ " It had always been jarring to hear his own voice so perfectly out of such an...imperfect body. The money that he'd had to spend to perfect his own body was less than an hour of his income, but the principle itself offended him. That they could call themselves a flawless imposter, and take pride in the body they'd created for themselves. He seethed, standing and starting to collect his letter and chocolates.

"This conversation is over," he said. "Kindly vacate my sight. And if you're still dressed as me the next time you cross my path, I  _ will _ sue you into the ground."

When he looked up, he saw that the look on the imposter's face was... Nothing like what he expected. He had expected smugness, perhaps. A snide grin. The expression that  _ he _ got when he knew he was right, god forbid. Or else fear, shock, or sniveling cowardice. Something he could imagine from a person who was too weak to wear their own face.

What he saw was pain. And that was enough to make him pause. He watched, as the imposter just stared down at their (fat, soft, pitiful) hands.

"...What?" he snapped finally. They flinched, and mumbled something. "Speak up, damn you. I don't speak insect."

"I wanted to ask you how you did it," the imposter said, not much louder, but more clearly.

"Did  _ what? _ " Byakuya asked. They looked up at him.

"How you knew. How you became Byakuya Togami." The two stared at one another in the silent dining hall for a long moment, matched eyes locked together. Were the imposter's eyes naturally that color, he wondered, or were they wearing contacts? Hair dye, or an impeccable wig?

He considered walking away in silence. Instead, he slowly sat back down, folding his long legs back underneath the table.

"How I knew I wasn't a girl." It wasn't a question, but the imposter nodded, anyway. Byakuya inhaled slowly, closing his eyes for a moment. "Don't be ridiculous." 

"What-" Byakuya opened his eyes and stared down the imposter coldly.

"If you really wanted to learn from me, you would be confident enough to make your own story, not rely on the stories of others." He crossed his arms. "It isn't even remotely the same, anyway. I have never been nor pretended to be anyone other than Byakuya Togami, even when that person had a different name." The imposter was silent for a long moment.

"I see," they said, slowly. "But... can it really be so easy?"

"What?"

"The person my classmates call their friend... That's who I am, whether or not they have a name. That's what you're saying, isn't it?"

"Whatever it takes to get you to finally stop calling yourself Byakuya Togami," Byakuya said, impatiently. "I've humored you for long enough. Just choose a new name and be done with it. If you keep hiding behind another person's name, you'll never really become your own person. I chose my own name and then I fought for it. If you can't understand that, then you were never worthy of my time to begin with."

"Then I'll think about it," the imposter said, getting to their feet with an impressive grace that didn't match their obese shape. "And the next time we see each other, I'll introduce that person to you."

"Tch," Byakuya scoffed. "That's what you said last time. I'll believe it when I see it." The imposter smiled, and turned to leave. Byakuya picked up his mother's letter again, then looked at the box of chocolates. "Hey. imposter," he called.

"Yes?" They turned, giving Byakuya an opening.

"Catch." He tossed one of the chocolates across the room. The imposter nearly missed the window, but caught it in their palm, then picked it up in the other hand, holding it up to see it from all angles.

"For me?" they asked.

"They're my favorite," he said, putting the lid back onto the box and tying the ribbons back into a bow. "I'm giving you permission to try one, before you give up my name forever."

"Heh. I bet they're expensive, aren't they. Price is no substitute for flavor, of course..." They bit into it nonetheless, savoring the first taste and then finishing the second bite. "But all in all, it isn't bad." Byakuya made a disgusted noise, as they delicately sucked a smudge of melted chocolate from their fingertips. "...Thank you, Byakuya. Happy New Year."

"Go away," Byakuya said, picking up his tablet and opening his portfolio. "You're polluting my space."

The chuckle that faded, as the imposter left the room, was the first time he had heard them not imitating him at all.


End file.
